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Po
Master Po Ping is the main protagonist of the ''Kung Fu Panda'' franchise. He is one of Master Shifu's students, Mr. Ping's only adoptive son, Tai Lung's arch-enemy and the Dragon Warrior. ''Kung Fu Panda'' Despite his low self-esteem, Po entertains grandiose fantasies of being the greatest Kung-Fu master in all of China and hanging out with the Furious Five, the greatest fighting elite in China, whom he idolises. He doesn't believe he will ever accomplish this goal however due to his lack of confidence as well as his total lack of physical fitness or fighting skills. Po works in a noodle shop with his father Mr. Ping who is a goose. This suggests that Po is adopted. One day Master Oogway, the greatest Kung-Fu master in creation, decided to choose someone to become the Dragon Warrior, the protector of China. The Dragon Warrior is granted the unlimited power of the Dragon Scroll which. On the day Master Oogway chooses the new Dragon Warrior, Po, being a kung-fu geek, runs to the Jade Palace where the ceremony will take place. Through a complex series of events, Po finds himself directly in front of Master Oogway when he is about to chose the new Dragon Warrior and Oogway then appoints Po. Po now finds himself living in the Jade Palace, under the cruel tutelage of the wise and powerful, but cold and stern Master Shifu, who trained the Furious Five and considers Po an abomination, believing that one of the Furious Five should be the Dragon Warrior. Whilst training Po, Shifu treats him a manner that borders on physical, emotional and psychological abuse in order to get him to abandon his dreams of glory and leave the Jade Palace, forcing Master Oogway to appoint one of the Furious Five the Dragon Warrior. The eternally optimistic, determined and somewhat masochistic Po perseveres however, despite the Furious Five's open hostility toward him. Po manages to form a friendship with two members of the Five, Viper and Mantis, while Tigress and Crane remain contemptuous of him, and Monkey appears to find his sense of humor amusing. The beautiful and powerful, but deeply self-centered Tigress particularly resents Po. Meanwhile, the fearsome Tai Lung breaks free from Chor-Gong prison and makes his way to the village to take the Dragon Scroll for himself. When news reaches the Jade Palace, Po nearly flees in terror and Master Shifu attempts to persuade him otherwise. Po reveals that he is sick of Master Shifu's abuse but he is even more sick of himself. Master Shifu resolves to take Po more seriously and train him to be the Dragon Warrior. The quixotic red panda takes Po to the Pool of Sacred Tears where Master Oogway unraveled the secrets of Kung-Fu. There, Shifu teaches Po how to use his size and weight to his advantage, as well as achieving greater balance and agility, enabling him to be a formidable opponent. The Furious Five meanwhile, leave the Jade Palace to go and take on Tai Lung, but failed miserably. They return, beaten and humiliated to the Jade Palace and Master Shifu finally decides to bestow the Dragon Scroll upon Po, believing that it is the only way to stop Tai Lung. After Po receives the Scroll, however, he finds that it is a blank, reflective piece of parchment. Believing all hope to be lost, Shifu orders the Five to evacuate the Valley and tells Po to leave with them. As the rest all leave, Shifu waits behind to face Tai Lung. Reunited with his father, Po is leaving the village when his father reveals to him the secret of his Secret Ingredient Soup: there is no secret ingredient! "To make something special, you just need to believe it's special!" Po comes to realize the symbolism of the Scroll: it shows ones reflection, meaning that one has the power to be great within themselves. With new found vigor, Po returns to the Jade Palace where he finds Master Shifu at the mercy of Tai Lung. Po introduces himself as the Dragon Warrior. Tai Lung is at first disdainful toward the large panda, but when Po reveals he has the Dragon Scroll, the ruthless snow leopard launches a savage assault and a raging battle takes place, leading Po and Tai Lung down to the village below. During the duel, Po beats, humiliates and even sits on Tai Lung but is eventually beaten into submission. Tai Lung triumphantly takes the Dragon Scroll, but upon unraveling, it is horrified to find it blank. Failing to interpret the Scroll's symbolism, and after having Po explain it to him, Tai Lung attacks Po in a blind fury. Po subdues and ultimately captures Tai Lung with the dreaded Wuxi Finger Hold technique and defeats him. With Tai Lung no where to be found, the villagers return and Po is hailed as the hero he is. The courageous panda then returns to the Jade Palace to find Master Shifu battered and bruised but alive. The two Kung Fu masters lie on their backs contemplating the mysteries of the universe for about a minute before conceding to go and get something to eat. ''Kung Fu Panda 2'' Some time after defeating Tai Lung, Po took on a dare from the Furious Five (who were all egging him on and staring in awe) in the Training Hall to see how many bean buns he could stuff into his mouth (the end result being forty). He was then summoned to the Dragon Grotto where he witnessed Master Shifu performing one of Oogway's last teachings. Shifu specified that this was the next step in his training, but before they could proceed with the lesson, Tigress arrived with news that the Musicians' Village was under attack. Po immediately rose to the challenge and left with the Five. As Po and the Furious Five fought the invading pack of wolves, they managed to save most of the metal the wolves were attempting to steal. The pack had been chased off and the village celebrated their heroes. Suddenly, Po turned to see another wolf still present and prepared to battle him. But before he could do so, he spotted a symbol on the wolf's armor and received a flashback of his mother, which temporarily dazed him long enough to take the wolf's hammer to the face. Realizing that he had seen a vision of his past, Po then went to Mr. Ping and asked him where he came from. After some questioning, Mr. Ping showed him an empty radish crate and explained that that was where he had found him. After Mr. Ping told him the story, Po was dissatisfied with the little information he had gained, and still had a lot of remaining questions. One day, Shifu received a message that Master Thundering Rhino of Gongmen City died, killed by a powerful weapon that Lord Shen had made, which was capable of stopping Kung Fu. Shifu then told Po and the Five to go to Gongmen City and destroy the weapon, though Po was concerned about how they would be able to "stop something that stops Kung Fu", to which Shifu replied "anything is possible, when you have inner peace." Po and the Furious Five were stopped by Mr. Ping when passing his shop, who gave Po a backpack full of his favorite foods, painted 'snapshots' of their precious moments together and Po's action figures. Fearing for his son, Mr. Ping pleaded with him not to go, but Po still wished to fulfill his duty as the Dragon Warrior. Po and the Five then set off. They spent several days traveling across China, over snowy mountains and through huge deserts. While sleeping on the last leg of their journey, traveling down a river in a small boat, Po had a dream about his parents replacing him with a radish. Po woke up and went outside the boat to try and do the technique Shifu showed him. But droplets of water just kept falling on his head, keeping him from concentrating, eventually causing him to yell in frustration. Po was soon caught by Tigress, who soon started to spar with him. Po saw that Tigress couldn't feel anything whenever he hit her, giving him the wrong idea that she was emotionless. He began to feel envious of her 'show no emotion' ability, considering his current inner turmoil, and inadvertently made Tigress uncomfortable by telling her this. When they arrived at Gongmen City, they found that the wolves that had raided the Musicians' Village had taken over the city, harassing the citizens. Po then made a plan to sneak in with a dragon costume. He eventually found a sheep, who told him that Master Storming Ox and Master Croc were being kept inside Gongmen Jail. Upon arriving at the jail, Po and the Five burst the Masters' prison cell door open, but they refuse come with them and instead stay in the cell. Po tried to get the two Masters out of the cell, but failed. Then Master Storming Ox told Po that they should just give up because kung-fu is dead. Po was taken aback by this and finally decides to leave them behind. However, as soon as they turn to depart, Boss Wolf and two of his wolves find them. Although the two wolves were quickly taken down by the Five, Boss Wolf fled and Po tried to catch him, their frantic chase ending up in front of Shen's palace. All of Boss Wolf's wolves surround them. Po then told them that they surrender, all according to his plan to be taken to Lord Shen. As they were taken up to Shen, Po found a small figurine of the weapon, thinking that it was really the weapon, and destroyed it, but his triumph turned to horror when he saw the actual, larger weapon. In the conversation between Po, the Soothsayer, and Shen that followed, Po began to sense that Shen and the Soothsayer knew something that he didn't. Shen then ordered Boss Wolf to fire the cannon at Po and the Five, but when he tried to light the fuse, Mantis (who had never been captured, fooling the guards with one of Po's Furious Five Action Figures|action figures) was quick to put it out and attacked Boss Wolf. Meanwhile, Viper had successfully picked and unlocked Tigress' cuffs, freeing her and the others. Po then attacked Shen and the Five destroyed the weapon. When Po had the chance to fight Shen, however, he realized that he saw him when he was a baby, knowing that Shen knew about his past. Shen escaped and the Masters found that more cannons had been produced. Seeing that they were trapped inside the Palace, their only way out was up. As Po and the Five reached the top of the Palace, they jumped and evaded the fire arrows being shot at them. They returned to Gongmen Jail, where Masters Storming Ox and Croc were still in the cell. Tigress confronted Po as to why he let Shen escape, and decided to leave him in the jail when he refused to answer. After trying to leave anyway, but being stopped by Tigress in a brief fight, Po finally told her that he saw Shen in his past and he wanted to ask him about what happened while he was there. He voiced his determination to interrogate Shen, staying that "the hardcore can't understand," but is then surprised when Tigress unexpectedly hugged him. She told him that she did understand, but still kept him there, for she didn't want to see her friend die. Po realized that Tigress wasn't as emotionless as he had thought. However, Po still wanted answers about his past, and followed the Five to locate Shen at the cannon foundry. After a long battle, Shen eventually told him that his parents abandoned him and that they didn't love him. Taking advantage of Po's shock, he revealed one of his largest cannons and fired at at the panda. Although he had blocked most of the blow with a wok pan, the force still shot him out of the factory and into a nearby river, unconscious and badly-injured. After floating down the river and into a foggy forest, Po was eventually rescued by the Soothsayer, who brought him to a derelict village and healed him. Po looked around at where he was and the Soothsayer told him that this place was where he was born. Po, at first, didn't believe her, but then he started to have visions of Shen and his wolf army attacking pandas. He then let his mind flow, finally achieving inner peace in the process, performing the same water drop technique Shifu had demonstrated, and the story of his past flowed through his mind. He learned that his parents did not abandon him, despite what Shen had said. Through some wise words from the Soothsayer, Po also learned that despite his terrible beginning, he had led a deeply fulfilling life since being adopted by Mr. Ping. Po returned to Gongmen City, finally knowing who he really was, and saw the Furious Five tied up in chains above Shen's fleet, which was just about to leave the city to begin his conquest of China. Shen noticed the panda and ordered his wolves to fire at him. But Po made it on the boat and attacked the wolves, thus freeing the Five. Later in the battle, Storming Ox and Croc joined in, along with Shifu, who had traveled to the city after sensing Po's near-death-experience. When Po was being fired at, Tigress pushed him away, taking most of the impact of the cannon. All of the Kung Fu warriors set themselves on pieces of the boat, exhausted and defeated. Angered at the sight of his friends injured before him, Po then swam to a piece of shattered timber and stood before the entire fleet, where Shen fired at him once more. Po, concentrating on inner peace, evaded the cannon fire and performed the astounding act of redirecting them into the river. Shen ordered to fire at him again, but Po kept on evading until he threw one of the cannonballs at Shen, impacting with his cannon and destroying his entire fleet. Later, Po found Shen among the remains of his fleet, who then asked the panda how he managed to find peace after all he had done to him. Po told him that he had simply left his past behind, and also urged Shen to do the same. But Shen ignored this and instead started attacking Po in a rage. Po evaded Shen's attacks until Shen had suddenly cut loose his destroyed cannon, which fell on top of him and exploded as Po dived out of range into the water. Po surfaced near the dock and was greeted by Tigress, who then helped him out of the water and complimented his actions as "pretty hardcore". Po then suddenly hugged her just as she had done in the jail, shocking her and the rest of the Five who were watching nearby. Shifu came by moments later and congratulated Po on achieving inner peace at a young age. All of the villagers then cheered for Po as he and his friends watched the fireworks display. Po returned home to Mr. Ping, who had missed his son very much. He then told him that he found the place where he was born, and had also found out how he ended up in the radish basket that Mr. Ping had found him in. He then declared that Mr. Ping was his father, having a newfound respect for the goose that took him in and the two shared a tearful hug before they went into the noodle shop's kitchen to cook. Relationships Though Po had merely been trying to see which of the Furious Five would be chosen as the Dragon Warrior, he himself ended up being selected by Oogway instead of any of Shifu's students. Though Oogway had foretold that whoever he'd choose would bring peace to the Valley and to Shifu himself, Shifu refused to accept that a "flabby panda" could be the true Dragon Warrior. Outraged at this turn of events, he immediately determined that he would make the unwitting panda quit his training by morning, and later met Po in the Jade Palace, quickly showing his disapproval for the panda by mocking his pudgy appearance. Though Po tried to talk back, he was quickly caught in the Wuxi Finger Hold by the master, who threatened that he would regret ever being chosen. Daunted, Po was then shown into the Training Hall, but being a big fan of kung fu, he showed a willingness to do some moves himself. However, he clumsily came upon several training mechanisms, Shifu and the Five merely watching him in his struggle, and Shifu only pleased to see the panda having a hard time. Though Po was discouraged that Shifu could ever make him into the Dragon Warrior, he received some advice from Oogway to concentrate on the moment instead of doubting his abilities. That next morning the red panda was convinced Po had quit as his quarters were empty, but he saw that Po had instead arrived at early the training courtyard to "warm up". Annoyed, Shifu later set him up with many brutal sparring matches with the Five and himself, again hoping it would drive the panda to quit. However, Po only demonstrated an eager fearlessness to continue despite failing and getting pummeled every time. Infuriated, Shifu kicked the panda out of the training grounds and down the palace stairs himself. However, Po still didn't quit, and was later seen with the Five, mimicking Shifu's stern personality much to their amusement, until Shifu himself appeared a moment later and shared the grim news that Tai Lung had escaped prison and was returning, and that Po was the only one who could stop him. Po was alarmed and fled, but was stopped by Shifu outside the palace stairs. Po then confronted the master about how he'd been trying to get rid of him, and that neither of them really thought he was the Dragon Warrior. Shifu asked him why he hadn't quit in spite of everything, and was taken aback when Po admitted that being beat and humiliated was still better than living every day being himself, and hoped that by staying, the kung fu master could change him. When Po demanded just how Shifu could actually help him to win against Tai Lung, Shifu was at a loss and quietly retreated without an answer. The next morning, Po was discovered raiding the barracks' kitchen, eating everything he could find in his distraught state. Shifu was astounded to see that Po displayed an unintentional talent in kung fu while trying to rummage the place for more food, even making a perfect split while doing so. Shifu understood that the best way to teach him was to use food as motivation, and with that, he took the panda to the Wu Dan Mountains. He proclaimed that he would be Po's master and would teach him kung fu, much to the elation of the panda. During an intense period of training, the two formed a bond of friendship and trust, and Shifu saw Po's mastery and humility in a final test of "keep away" using a dumpling as the prize. Though Po won, he gave back the dumpling, declaring with confidence that he wasn't hungry, and ended bowing respectfully to his master, with Shifu bowing to him in return. By the time they returned to the Jade Palace, Shifu believed that Po was ready to receive the Dragon Scroll, and used his name instead of calling him "panda" when addressing him. But when the scroll turned out to be blank, both Po and Shifu were confused, neither seeing how Po could defeat the snow leopard on his own. With Tai Lung approaching, the Five were ordered to to evacuate the Valley, while Shifu declared he would fight Tai Lung himself. Po was reluctant to let Shifu fight alone, afraid he would be killed, but he obeyed and left with the Five. Once he reunited with his father and realized the true secret of the Dragon Scroll, Po returned to the palace just in time to save an injured Shifu from Tai Lung's attack. After Po defeated Tai Lung, he again returned to the palace and found Shifu, who weakly thanked him for saving the Valley and bringing him peace, seeing that Oogway had indeed been right, and that Po was the Dragon Warrior foretold of in legend. After the master trailed off and closed his eyes, the panda pleaded with him not to die, only for Shifu to yell back that he wasn't dying, he was only at peace, and master and student shared a long meditative moment side by side, until Po interrupted, asking if Shifu wanted to get something to eat, which the red panda agreed to after a sigh. Po and Shifu then shared a meal of dumplings at the Peach Tree of Heavenly Wisdom, together as two friends.13 Although Shifu has accepted Po, he continues to show some impatience with the panda, and later stated that the day Po was chosen as Dragon Warrior was the worst day of his life, though also noted that Po had not been the real cause of his turmoil, but rather it was his own expectations and presumptions. He also appeared to be slightly jealous that Po had mastered inner peace at such a young age, though he was deeply impressed at Po's incredibly swift mastery and how he used it to defeat Lord Shen.14 The two now continue to sustain a good friendship, with only the occasional quarrel, and Po has also come to consider Shifu as being part of his family.15 The Furious Five As a big fan of the Furious Five, Po's admiration for them is great, so much that his bedroom is covered in posters and he owns an action figure set he had carved himself. He was willing to make several comedic and potentially dangerous attempts to get into the palace arena, just to see the Five perform in the Dragon Warrior Tournament. Po was disheartened when the Five were disdainful of him after being chosen as the Dragon Warrior, though he was eventually able to win them over with his cooking skills and his tenacity. In the second film, Po has joined forces with the Furious Five, and now stands as good friends with them. However, he has a tendency to embarrass them from time to time, for example when he indiscreetly sneaked into Gongmen City donning a Dragon Costume, and when he later destroyed a model of Shen's cannon, mistaking it for the real one, with the Five staring at him in shock and embarrassment. However, the Five deeply care for Po, evidenced by their despair when Po was seemingly killed, and their ecstasy when he returned alive. Tigress After being chosen as the Dragon Warrior, presumably before it seemed Tigress was about to be chosen, Po was treated with contempt by her, as shown during his first night in the Palace's barracks, and he was upset when Tigress blatantly told him he was a disgrace to kung fu and should leave. Although Tigress continued to display resentment towards Po for the majority of the film, he never held a grudge against her for it. It wasn't until the film's end that Tigress finally accepted Po as the Dragon Warrior, and Po seemed appreciative of it.13 In the events depicted in Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness, Po's friendship with Tigress gradually grew. While Po's immaturity, clumsiness and habit for hasty decisions still frequently annoyed Tigress, she has come to realize that he is a resourceful warrior who truly deserves to be the Dragon Warrior. However, their differences came to a head when Po's antics annoyed Tigress to the point that she finally lost her temper and suggested that Oogway had made the wrong choice about Po. It was then that Po finally spoke against her, stating she sucked at friendship and "funship". However, he didn't hesitate to come to her rescue when she was captured by Fung and his bandit gang. After the battle, Tigress took back her earlier statement and the rift between them was mended.16 In the sequel, Po and Tigress seemed to have developed a closer friendship with each other since the events of the first film. This was first seen when Po stuffed forty bean buns in his mouth, and Tigress encouraged him, joining in on the fun with he rest of the Five. Furthermore, like the rest of the Five, Tigress has learned to work in unison with Po in combat, as shown when they fought off the wolf bandits in the Musician Village. When Po became afflicted with an identity crisis when he learned the truth about his adoption, Tigress alone persuaded him to talk about his emotional problems, but during their conversation Po unknowingly made Tigress feel uncomfortable when he claimed that she couldn't feel anything. Despite their close friendship, Po was extremely reluctant to tell Tigress about his discovery of Shen's involvement in his past when she interrogated him in Gongmen Jail. When Tigress ordered Po to stay behind in the prison after he had allowed Shen to escape, he insisted on leaving, leading to a minor one-sided duel between them. Po eventually revealed his wish to learn the truth about his parents, and stated that the 'hardcore' wouldn't understand. He received a shock when she hugged him instead of lunging at him. She told Po she did understand, but wouldn't allow her friend to be killed, showing him that she wasn't as unfeeling as Po thought she was. Near the end of the movie, during the battle in the canal, Tigress shoved Po out of the line of fire a second before Shen fired his cannon and sent the kung fu warriors flying into the harbor. After the explosion, Po swam for Tigress after spotting her lying motionless on a piece of driftwood, and gently took her paw. Seeing how badly injured she was, Po locked eyes with Shen, giving him a long burning glare. He then pushed Tigress out of firing range before swimming away to face Shen's armada for the last time. After Shen was defeated, Po hugged Tigress after she had complimented his heroic actions as "pretty hardcore". Tigress was bewildered and didn't hug back, but stood alongside Po and the others, her paw resting on his arm, and happily watched the fireworks above Gongmen City in wake of Po's victory. Other Appearances ''Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five'' Coming soon! ''Kung Fu Panda Holiday'' Coming soon! ''Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness'' '' Po'' ''Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Masters'' Coming soon! Personality and Traits Po could adequately be described as a geek. Despite being a young adult, he lives with his father, working in the family noodle bar and collects action figures, much to the bemusement of his neighbors. He gives the impression of being free-spirited and eternally upbeat but his carefree exterior hides his self-loathing. He tells Master Shifu "...every time you threw a brick at my head, or said I smelled, it hurt, but it could never hurt more than it did every day of my life just being me." Po's inferiority complex is probably the result of his obesity and his lack of hygiene which are likely the result of his domineering father not teaching him independence. Nevertheless under Master Shifu's encouragement and training, Po develops a healthy and full sense of self. Po's enthusiasm, determination and sense of humour are among his greatest strengths. Despite his initial lack of self-confidence, he possesses a larger than life personality from the start of the film. He is also shown to be quite intelligent as shown by his deduction of the Dragon Scroll's symbolism, his vast knowledge of Kung Fu and how he worked out the technique of the Wuxi Finger Hold which not even the exceptionally talented Tai Lung knew the secret of. Trivia * Po is the enemy of Tai Lung. Gallery Kungfu.jpg|Po Kung fu panda19.jpg|Po in the air Kung fu panda 2-1280x1024.jpg Cubpo.png|Po cub KungFuPanda P.jpg|Po and Mr. Ping po3.jpg Quotes * (Gasp) I've only seen paintings of that painting! * The Sword of Heros! Said to be so sharp you can cut yourself just by look-ARGH! * Thanks, I er, probably loosened it up for you though. * Buddy, I am the Dragon Warrior. * There is no Secret Ingredient. It's just you! * I'm not a big fat panda. I'm the big fat panda. * (Out of breath) I know you're trying to be all mystical and kung-fu-e, but could you at least tell me where we're going? * Skadoosh. * You wanna go get something to eat? *I mean it might work...a little, I mean I'm pretty scared. *Get ready to feel the thunder! *Uh, hey, guys! Lets'' quiet down. No cell phones, no talking, no texting. You don't think it makes a sound? It does. I can hear it. ''Click click click click click! Okay, I know what you're thinking: You're a ''panda, man. What are you ''gonna do about it? Check it out! (Does some kung fu moves.) You guys are awesome. Except for you, with the texting. I'm watching you. 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